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Western Amateur Looking to Rotate Venues

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BENTON HARBOR, Mich. -- The Point O'Woods Golf & Country Club will no longer be the sole host of the Western Amateur golf tournament after 2008.

Tiger Woods (1994) and Phil Mickelson (1991) are among the big names who have won Western Amateur titles at Point O'Woods, which first hosted the tournament in 1963. It returned in 1965 and has been held at the club since 1971.

The Western Golf Association's five-year contract with the Benton Harbor course expires following this year's July 28-Aug. 3 event. The association is looking to rotate the national championship among Point O'Woods and Chicago-area clubs.

'Allowing us the flexibility to include four Chicago area venues with the Point will provide more exposure for the prestigious Western Amateur,' said John Kaczkowski, the association's vice president of tournaments, announced Monday.

Woods' 1994 victory was his first major win in amateur competition. It came just three weeks before he claimed the 1994 U.S. Amateur title.

'The club's board feels that hosting the event on a rotating basis will benefit both the tournament and the Point,' Point O'Woods president Mike Piraino said. 'Local attendance at the event has declined in recent years.'